Category: Devotions

Testimony

This morning I arrived back from Namibia. Whilst it was wonderful to meet new people and do mission with them, my heart has been in Nepal. I am delighted to tell you this wonderful testimony of a missionary in Nepal that is encouraging and inspiring, that despite the evil of man or the disasters of nature, love and kindness can find a way that brings glory to God. Here is his story:

“I’m from Sierra Leone. I was a teacher. Many of my students struggled against the pull of poverty and hopelessness. One of my pupils, Vandie, abruptly stopped going to school. When I visited his home to find out why, he tearfully admitted that other kids had been making fun of his old, beat-up trousers and lack of shoes. I bought Vandie some clothes and shoes and he returned to school, still poor but proud.

After several years of teaching, rebels invaded my small village in December 1998, burning it to the ground and killing hundreds. My younger sisters, my brother-in-law and my grandmother were brutally murdered right in front of me.

I was captured by rebels, interrogated, tortured and told I would be executed.

One of the rebel soldiers — a youth with his face covered — eagerly stepped up to play the role of executioner. The boy led me out of sight of the group to the execution spot. My heart was pounding. My mind was fixed on death. “Teacher, do you remember me?” the boy asked. “I will not kill you. You are a good man. Do you remember that you bought me shoes and pants so I could go to school?”

I watched in amazement as the young man removed the cover from his head, revealing familiar eyes and a tear-soaked face. Vandie drew a rough map with charcoal to the nearest village held by peacekeepers. That’s how I crawled to safety and, eventually, returned to my family.”

We just do not know who we are reaching and what may happen do we?
Read Hebrews 6:10; 13:2 and Galatians 6:7

Stay

Christianity came to Namibia 200 years ago.
I met a Pastor yesterday who told me how there had been 10 attempts at trying to plant a church but it was the 11th time that it was successful. The planting was done by 4 female Finnish missionaries who when their Missions board had asked them to return because of the civil war they pretended they hadn’t got the message and stayed!
Now being a Missions Director I would obviously state that missionaries should always obey their Mission boards etc!
But isn’t it wonderful that they didn’t?!
They stayed.

Take a look at 2 Samuel 23: 11-12.
One of David’s mighty men was called Shammah.
He stayed.
Every year the Philistines would come and loot the land and strike fear into the people of Israel.
All that had been produced was taken.
But not this year.
Shammah stood his ground. He stayed.

Know this that the enemy of your life wants to strike fear into you.
He wants to frustrate you. To rob you of what you have produced.
He wants to disappoint you so that you remove yourself from your appointment that God has given you.
It needs someone to stay.
Just stay awhile longer. When you want to quit, move back, slow down, at that point, don’t. Stay and see what happens.
You will see that God is with you. God will defend you and God will bring you through.
Stay.

Perspective

Yesterday after the church service, the missions team walked into the community of the shanty town to pray with anyone who would let us. I walked with a lady who had invited us to her home. She could understand English and she told me how she had 10 children from 3 fathers, she had never married and all 3 fathers had left her with the children. She exists by offering herself as a cleaner to other people’s homes for a small amount of food or money but it is a life that scrapes by.
She invited me into her home. I find it hard to describe it. How do people live like this? There was nothing nice about it at all. But it was home. Her outside kitchen she used once a day to cook porridge and then soup. Her family had this every day.
I prayed for her that the presence of God would invade her life. I prayed that she might receive His love for her.
Then I stopped in my mind. My mouth continued to pray but my mind was elsewhere.
It was Perspective. That’s what I focused on.
Perspective. An outlook on something, a view.
This incredible lady had tough challenges:
She had lost 3 lovers.
Today in Nepal lovers grieve.
She has 10 children to feed.
Today in Nepal families have less children to feed.
She has very little.
Today in Nepal many have less than this lady.
She has a makeshift home.
Today in Nepal homes have vanished.

Already people seem to be rushing with their perspectives on why the earthquake took place!
Why did God allow this to happen?
Simple is the answer already being given, it’s the sin of Nepal, they are under judgment!
What kind of perspective is this?!!
Read today: Luke 13:1-5
Why didn’t God prevent that disaster?
Was it because of their guilt?
No! We are all guilty!

So let me give you some perspective …
Where was God in this earthquake in Nepal?
Perspective.
Where are you now?
Have you prayed?
Have you given?

Life

Compared to other African countries, Namibia is a pleasant nation to live in. It doesn’t have some of the challenges that other countries have.
Life expectancy here is much higher than most African countries being 63 for the male and 66 for the female.

But I am struggling thinking of the work I am meant to be doing here today when my heart is with the Nepalese. I went to bed last night with the BBC stating a 1,000 deaths have been recorded. We all know it will be much higher as the effects of the 7.8 magnitude earthquake that struck at midday yesterday will be counted.
I am so thankful that our missionaries and their families are safe but it feels selfish to be thankful when so many are devastated through the loss of loved ones.
How can life be so cheap, so fragile? But it is.
Yesterday ordinary people, like you and me, were going about their daily lives, in cafes, shops, temples of worship, at home etc. They were thinking and talking about a myriad of things. Their plans, their hopes and dreams. Their disappointments and complaints. They were thinking about tomorrow and this next week. They were talking about what might happen, what could happen, that life could get better.
Then the time struck 12 noon and everything stopped and it all ended. Gone.

Let’s read James 4:13-14

If you knew that this was your last day on earth, what would you do? How would you spend it and who with? Who would you speak to and what would you say? Who needs an apology from you? Who needs some thanks and encouragement? What lies unfinished? What could you do again simply because the person deserves it?

Live your life as if this day was your last. Hold your future lightly.
This is life.

Speed

I am definitely hoping to see a Cheetah or two whilst I am here in Namibia, after all there are between 2,500 to 3,000 just roaming free. The fastest land animal can cruise at 70mph and when it runs it steers itself by using its tail like the rudder of a boat.
They have other fast things here that run. Remember Frankie Fredericks? He’s Namibian. He’s fast. He has run 200 metres in 19.68 seconds.
In 20 days time there will be a major car rally championship in the desert here. Again … Speed! Maybe the Namibians just like fast things.
Remember the man who drove chariots at top speed. Not Ben Hur. Jehu!
Read it in 2 Kings 9.
He must have collected a lot of speed tickets.
Elisha through a messenger had anointed Jehu King of Israel. And he began to bring down the powers of Ahab and Jezebel. These were strongholds of compromise, materialism, fear and control. He did it at breakneck speed. He did it driving like a maniac, v20.
Maybe we all should be quicker to deal with such powers. These enemies want peace, they want deals, they want to exist within our lives, communities, churches. No way says Jehu! I’m driving like a madman because I am mad. Maybe we should too. Maybe we should be so determined, focused, committed to bringing down such intimidating voices in the lives of people that we become known.
Let’s object to weak, insipid compromise that seems to bless everything no matter what the standard.
Let’s drive like Jehu. Speed is good!

Desert

Today I go to Namibia.
Namibia, where 80% of the country is made up of desert.
Somewhere in that desert apparently is Kolmanskop, a town thriving with German miners at one stage but now is run-down and empty of people. Once there was a bustle of excited miners seeking their fortune with the diamonds that were being discovered. Now, no one. In fact tourists do come, but they now come to view the houses sinking into the desert. The desert is swallowing Kolmanskop.
I won’t have time to visit but it would be a good visit I am sure.

The Bible has lots to say about deserts. I won’t be reading today Proverbs 21:19, okay I lie, I did! But I certainly won’t be referring to that, not at all!

We all find ourselves in a desert at some point, we know what that feels like. A desert experience with God, at work, with our partner. I had coffee recently with a couple who were in this desert. Sadly, the desert is doing to them what the Namib desert is doing to Kolmanskop. They are sinking. They are not what they used to be.

How can you survive the desert?
1. Expect God to guide you through it, Jeremiah 2:6
2. Know you are not unknown. God does care, Hosea 13:5
3. Use the time to prepare for your future in God, Matthew 3:3
4. Resist the temptations that will be there, Matthew 4:1
5. Use this time to grow, Luke 1:80

Now let’s turn to Proverbs 21:19 …. only joking!

Stories

Leaders travelling from 600km away to receive training.
New Children’s centre about to be completed.
People being saved despite the Ebola disease.
New churches being planted.
Growth in language learning.
New people attending church services.
Young people changing their lives.
One man committing his life to Christ.
People signing up for evangelism courses.
Muslim and Buddhist children hearing of Jesus.
English language lessons doubled in size.
Unity amongst the churches standing in faith and prayer.
A new church building started to be built.

Just a day in the life of our Elim missionaries who shared together on the skype hubs yesterday.

Habakkuk 2:14 says “For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea”.

The news is bad news. Christians are dying. The Church is suffering. But God says the WHOLE earth will be filled with the knowledge of Gods glory.
This is Gods will.
His intention.
His plan.
So let’s keep telling the stories of what He is doing.

Graveyards and dishwashers

My office overlooks a lovely country church with a graveyard. I have never paid much attention to the graveyard until today.

Yesterday the manager of our Children’s centre in Cambodia was visiting where I work for her first time. Looking out of the window she was amazed at the graveyard. She has only seen them here in our nation.
Yesterday she took pictures of herself and our other project leader standing in front of a dishwasher! Again amazed at this brilliant and essential invention.
Graveyards and dishwashers.
Culturally acceptable for us. In fact it is only when they are confronted by those who are strangers to them that they stand out for us.

But how do we survive culture?

Jeremiah 29:4-9
Going into a different culture can be quite stressful and we can be anxious however ….

v4 God is still speaking from within a different culture.
v5 Build, settle, plant and eat = learn to live within a different culture.
v6 Marry …. Increase, let your children be born in a different culture.
v7 Pray for those within a different culture.
v8 Don’t let things within a different culture deceive you.

The morning of 10 sept 1984 9.05pm

“My life changed”

These are the words of Professor Sir Alex Jeffreys. He discovered that a human DNA could produce consistent patterns that could be traced to identify relatives.

The ITV drama, ‘The code killer’, recently told of the story of how Jeffreys discovery was then later used in criminal cases to reveal the guilty.
This DNA fingerprinting would be used 2 years later in a gruesome double murder plot that would reveal the killer.

As the drama unfolds we see such strong clinical working by Jeffreys.
We are shown an individual who was passionately on a journey of discovery. This resulted in many failures but he realised that every failure was one more step nearer success. He sacrificed much. Until one morning he said the words, “My life changed.”

These are epiphany moments.
You know where you were and what you were doing. But news came or you finished your project, that breakthrough came, and your life changed for the good and for ever.
There are many chasing breakthroughs. Breakthrough conferences. Breakthrough teachings. But actually breakthrough comes after hard work that is persistent and faithful, where sacrifice is known. It is not these kind of breakthroughs that people are wanting, but more a hand-out.
Noah had a breakthrough but he had to build a boat.
Moses had a breakthrough but he had to stand against Pharoah.
David had a breakthrough but he had to go into the battlefield to face Goliath.
The list could go on.
People who experience breakthroughs are the ones who work hard.

Micah 2: 12-13

Today your life could change!

#Prayerline 40 days of prayer for Nepal.

PRAYING THE LORD’S PRAYER OVER NEPAL (MATTHEW 6:9-13)

1. Pray for God’s name to be held in high regard, for His Kingdom to come and His will to be done in Nepal.

2. Pray for the provision of the needs of the people in this land of physical and spiritual poverty.

3. Pray for forgiveness and reconciliation at all levels of society – especially among church leaders so that they unite, embrace and forgive each other in Christian love.

4. Pray for strength during temptation and for deliverance from evil.

5. Pray for many Christians in Nepal and beyond to unite in 40 Days of Prayer for Nepal and to lift the nation up in prayer before the throne of God.